Grant Enhances Cardiology Services at UConn Health Center

A grant from the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving will support services at the UConn Health Center’s Pat and Jim Calhoun Cardiology Center.

The $73,400 grant from the Moses B. and Ann Rosenauer Fund — established at the Hartford Foundation in 1991 to support health-related organizations — will benefit each component of the Health Center’s missions of education, research and clinical care, says Bruce T. Liang, M.D., the director of the Calhoun Cardiology Center and chief of the Division of Cardiology.

“Particularly in today’s tight health care funding environment, private support can be the critical difference for our students, faculty, patients and researchers,” Liang says. “We’re very appreciative of this wonderful commitment to superior cardiology services in our region.”

At the Calhoun Cardiology Center, a multidisciplinary team of cardiologists, hypertension specialists and vascular surgeons research, diagnose and treat diseases of the heart and blood vessels, some of the most prevalent diseases among American men and women. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, heart disease is the leading cause of death and a major cause of disability in the United States. Almost 700,000 people die of heart disease in the U.S. each year, which accounts for approximately 29 percent of all U.S. deaths.

UConn cardiologists and hypertension specialists provide advanced medical diagnoses and care to help patients manage risk factors such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes. Patients also have access to a full range of sophisticated surgical procedures.

Ongoing research efforts at the center focus on novel ways to prevent the progression of coronary artery disease; protect against heart attacks by decreasing the damage or by restoring blood flow to areas affected by clogged arteries; enhance the performance of failing hearts; detect heart damage earlier and more accurately; and precisely detect the presence of circulation blockage. Many of these research projects build on unique research strengths at the UConn Health Center and areas of excellence like the Center for Vascular Biology, which is focused solely on the study of blood vessel function.

“For our clinicians, students and researchers to continually push the envelope, they need funding that supports innovation. Private giving does that,” Liang says. “This kind of support is priceless to the work that we do every day for the citizens of our state.”

To support the Pat and Jim Calhoun Cardiology Center, please contact the Office of Development and Alumni Relations at 860.679.1122 or by e-mail at supportuchc@foundation.uconn.edu.